Product Label Design Tips

A well designed product label can achieve important objectives: it reinforces brand identity; it describes the product; it entices customers; it stands out from competitors on the shelf and gets the company’s message across. Adhering to certain design principles when creating a product label can lead to successful branding for a business and, ultimately increase the products perceived value establishing relationships with customers, and in the long run increasing sales.

The following tips can help you design the best label for your product or service.

Choose your fonts wisely: Keep your fonts clear and legible. Font styles, colours and sizes will directly impact the customers’ impression of your brand. Don’t settle for the typical fonts like Arial or Times New Roman. Choose a font that will help the product stand out, or one that captures the personality of the product.

Keep it simple: Simplicity makes your design easier to recognise and remember, and has a greater chance of achieving timelessness.

Take into account the colour of your product label against the colouring of the packaging. You want your label to stand out rather than have a negative impact on the product.

Example: Here is a good use of patterns and colours against the wine bottles. Mas Romani label designed by Gabriel Morales.

Another idea is to use professional graphics such as drawings, vectors or photographs as a way of drawing consumers’ attention. iStockphoto and Vectorstock are good online sources where you can find professional images to add to your label.

Appropriate Size and Shape: Cut out and test a draft label against your product to decide on size and shape. An unusual shape will easily gain attention, differentiating itself from its competitors, although it can be more costly when printing. That does not mean a well designed rectangular label will not do the job. It’s a matter of deciding if a custom shaped label will correlate to your company’s branding.

Example: Two Beers Brewing Company, have brought the famous mountain ranges of their state to their beer packaging, creating a label that is shaped like a mountain.